Mavericks slow pitch motivated to win this fall

MOSES LAKE – After a strong 17-6 slow pitch season last fall, the Mavericks are eager to top their semifinal appearance in states this year. As the school year has started, they have returned to the field for practice.

Othello Chamber celebrates start of school with community

OTHELLO — Technically summer has a couple more weeks to run – Sept. 22 is officially the first day of fall – but summer seems to end when school opens. Othello schools opened last week, but the Othello Chamber of Commerce couldn’t let summer go without one last party.

Legals for September, 2 2025

Glen Williams water access to be closed for improvements

MARDON – The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) will temporarily close the Glen Williams Water Access Area on Potholes Reservoir beginning Sept. 8 to allow for planned improvements. The closure is expected to last through Oct. 23.

Ms snap losing streak Sunday after two losses to Guardians

CLEVELAND (AP) — The Seattle Mariners managed to break a seven-game losing streak over the weekend with a 4-2 victory against the Cleveland Guardians. The two teams played a three-game series with Cleveland taking two wins to Seattle’s one.

Friday jamboree helps area teams finalize strategies

EPHRATA – The Ephrata Tigers hosted a jamboree Friday afternoon to kick off the football season. The Tigers were joined by the Moses Lake Mavericks, the Royal City Knights and Wenatchee High Panthers. “I think it just kind of gives that little taste of competition against that other team where then you can’t wait to play that next game,” said Tigers head coach Patrick Mitchell.

BASIN SENIOR EVENTS: September 2025

COLUMBIA BASIN — The grandchildren are back in school, the summer family visits are done and there are plenty of things to get out and do this month. Here are a few:

Cougars rally behind new coach ahead of fall season

WARDEN — The Warden Cougars are striving to go above and beyond this season and bring up a new love for football in the community. “I’m ready to get some dubs, have some good times with my teammates and make lots of memories,” said junior Kameron Jensen, Cougars quarterback. For senior tight end Hunter Golladay, this season will be about returning to full swing following an injury that took him out of the final three weeks last season. He said that he broke his kneecap and irritated an old tear in his meniscus and made a full recovery in the spring, just in time to prepare for the fall season.

Huskies aim for a state championship title

OTHELLO — The Othello Huskies return to football again following their success last season. Last year the Huskies finished the season with a 9-2 overall record and made the state tournament. “It sounds cliché, but there was quite a bit of adversity with our starting quarterback going down and other injuries,” said Huskies Defensive Coach Kevin Hale. “The kids managed to fight through it; it could have been a situation where they could have easily folded, but that didn't happen, and we made the state playoffs.”

Lions look forward to increased roster for ’25-26 season

MOSES LAKE — The Moses Lake Christian Academy/Covenant Christian School Lions are preparing for the upcoming football season with high expectations as they enter their third year of the school’s football program. “We have most of our team back, only lost a few seniors, so looking to build our team chemistry and do good this year,” said Johnathan Ferguson, Lions quarterback. Athletic Director and Head Coach Josh Kast said the team ended its previous season 5-5, earned second in the Central Washington 1B league, and played in the state tournament. “(We) ended up having a tough matchup first round,” Kast said. “We got beat up pretty good over against Naselle in the playoffs.

Wahluke ready to prove they belong

MATTAWA — When Wahluke Warriors Head Coach Anfernee Cortez looks back at last season, he sees a great learning opportunity. Though they went 2-7, the Warriors headed into the off-season motivated to make a change, he said. “I know we didn't have the season we wanted or expected, but that just gave us a better mindset of how we need to attack the off-season and the things we need to do to get better," Cortez said. “I think that has been helping us create a mentality of the type of work we need to be doing, and the type of commitment we need.”

Jacks ready for new chapter under new leadership

QUINCY — This season, the Jacks will be under a new leadership but led by a familiar face: Seth Longwill. Longwill takes over as the Jacks new head coach this season and is focused on taking a different approach to practice. “We're really going to focus on doing the practices the right way," Longwill said. “We've already talked about our mentality in the off-season as well in the weight room and everything."

Eagles set sights on state

SOAP LAKE — The Soap Lake Eagles are preparing to come back into this season after ending last year with a 5-4 record and being two points away from making the state playoffs. “(We) had a couple of costly fumbles in a couple of different games,” said Eagles Head Coach Garrett Devine. “We were right there, but the top three from our league go to state and we ended up fourth.”

Big Sky Now: Week zero takeaways and bold week one picks

Big Sky Now breaks down an action-packed Week 0 in Big Sky Conference football and looks ahead to an exciting Week 1 slate.

Broncos looking to make memorable gallop onto the field

RITZVILLE – As the Lind-Ritzville/Sprague Broncos hit the gridiron for the first time this season, senior Jerod Harder hopes to leave an impact. When he thinks about what kind of impact, he said he wants it to be a memorable one. “I want coaches to remember me, the town to remember me. I do this for my family. My family loves football, I love football. I just want to have fun and play the game and leave a leave a statement,” Harder said.

ACH Warriors hoping to rebound this season

COULEE CITY — The Almira/Coulee-Hartline Warriors put together a strong 10-3 season last year, but left with a sour taste in their mouth after a close loss in the 1B state semifinals. Head Coach Brandon Walsh said he was proud of what the Warriors did last year, despite the outcome. “Last year was a really good year for us. We lost in the semifinals, which was a little disappointing, you don't have hopes and dreams of going to the championship and come up one step short... we're hoping to build on that,” Walsh said.

Tigers enter 4th year under Coach Mitchell

EPHRATA — The Ephrata Tigers are returning to the field for the 2025 season with a sense of confidence. They ended their previous season with a 5-5 record and plan to improve that record and make a deep playoff run. “We had a few key players leave last year, but I think we’re able to bounce right back just with the guys that played not as much,” said Tigers quarterback Brady Hendrick. “I think everyone on the team is ready to go.” Hendrick is one of the seniors with the Tigers this season and is coming into his third year starting. He said that during just the first few days of practice, he is starting to see strong chemistry between each of the players, where they’re building a tight friend group on a senior-heavy team.

BASIN EVENTS: September 2025

COLUMBIA BASIN — The days are cooling off – well, maybe a little – and the kids are back in school, which means fall is just around the corner. Here are some things to do to help you recover from the summer.

Positive drama: High school theater gives students confidence, people skills

MOSES LAKE — If, as Shakespeare wrote, all the world’s a stage, then a high school drama club must be the perfect place to prepare for life. “(Students who participate in drama) have a place where doesn't matter what's going on in school,” said Marla Allsopp, drama advisor at Ephrata High School. “They might feel like they don't quite fit in, but when they come to the theater, they're part of that group.”

Mavs motivated for a state run this season

MOSES LAKE — As the start of the 2025 season hits, the Mavericks bring in an experienced roster that has stayed hungry for a state title opportunity. Head Coach Brett Jay said the team has homed in on player development in the offseason. “We're going to focus on our locker room and develop every player we have. It's a yearlong process, our offensive linemen are all bigger and stronger, our receivers are bigger and faster, our backfield (quarterback and running back) is bigger and faster, and so it's exciting,” Jay said.